Latest News On Pennsylvania

Latest Kaiser Health News Stories

Hospitals are increasingly advertising medical services directly to patients to enhance their national brands. They think the image building improves their ability to negotiate with health plans and brings in wealthier patients.

Open enrollment for health insurance on the Affordable Care Act exchanges started last week. Across the country, municipalities, insurers and grass-roots groups are working hard to help folks navigate the hoops.

The $45 billion for opioid treatment in the Senate bill sounds like a lot of money, but an advocate estimates it would provide $1,000 to $2,000 per year for each person in Pennsylvania who might need treatment. Meanwhile, one year of methadone treatment for opioid addiction costs about $4,700 per year,

In Pennsylvania alone, 124,000 people received drug or alcohol addiction treatment through Medicaid. Republicans in Congress want to cut Medicaid by as much as $800 billion over the next decade, leaving people in recovery wondering what will happen to their treatment.

A major study in Philadelphia will look at whether it is better for people with gunshot or stab wounds to get basic care from paramedics or more advanced care before going to the hospital, as most do now.

Aetna is rolling out a special gold-level plan for 2016 that is aimed at providing better care for people with diabetes in the hopes of keeping them healthier—and their costs down. But it’s not clear the plans are a good buy.